Children are being put at risk because agencies do not treat child protection seriously enough, the government's chief inspectors have warned.

Staff shortages and a lack of resources are threatening safeguards for children, according to a joint report by inspectors of the main public services, including schools, social services, hospitals and the police.

Nobody is going to put their professional expertise on the line in a department that is chaotic

Chief inspector of Social Services Denise Platt

The "Safeguarding Children" report also found there was a lack of commitment to Area Child Protection Committees (ACPCs), which co-ordinate the main bodies responsible for protecting children.

The report, released on Monday, follows cases such as that of Victoria Climbie, where children were killed by their parents or carers, after the authorities failed to act on evidence that they were at risk.

It is the first report since the government announced a review of child protection every three years.

Recruitment problems

The report found many examples of good work but said insufficient priority was being given to the issue when planning services and allocating resources.

Many services had trouble recruiting and retaining staff - a problem directly affecting measures aimed at safeguarding children, it warned.

Victoria Anna Climbie, eight, was killed by her aunt and aunt's boyfriend

Chief inspector of Social Services Denise Platt said ministers appeared to consider child protection a high priority, but this was not underlined sufficiently.

She said many people do not want to go into child protection work because it has such a bad image and "they fear being lambasted for making a mistake".

Many social services departments had to rely on agency staff because people did not want to take up permanent posts, she added.

Working together

Social Services Minister Jacqui Smith told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We need to be clear about who is accountable for safeguarding our children.

"That has to be across a variety of agencies and at a senior level.

Smith says social work problems are being addressed

"We've got to ensure coordination between services and staff, and that we've got the capacity in the system."

Ms Smith said government measures to improve the status of social work included a recruitment campaign, a three-year degree with financial assistance and the setting up of the General Social Care Council watchdog.

She added: "There is a challenge to recruit sufficient people. We are taking action."

The report found that most ACPCs, which include members from local authorities, health services, the police, probation and the NSPCC, were inadequately resourced and lacked sufficient authority.

Reg Pengelly, of HMI Constabulary, said the report found police child protection officers had impressive commitment to their jobs.

Young offenders

But there was a general lack of force guidance and a lack of priority for their work.

"Many articulate a commitment to child protection but few demonstrate it through adequate resources and training," he said.

HMI Probation said the public could be reassured that probation services and the police worked well together.

The child protection system must be more child focused and safeguard children effectively

NSPCC

But it said the Home Office should review the Multi Agency Public Protection Panels set up in 2001 to plan arrangements for the supervision of released paedophiles.

The report said the government should consider whether these panels needed to be established on a statutory basis to give them greater authority.

Both Ofsted and the SSI said procedures were good for highly vulnerable children, but not always adequate for those at lower risk.

HMI Prisons said those held in Young Offenders' Institutions were detached from local child protection agencies and that should be rectified.

The NSPCC also welcomed the report.